Russia Proposes Profiling New Development Bank As Potential IMF Counterpart

The idea of ​​setting up such a bank was first floated in early 2017 by former Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich and then Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, who argued that it would offer flexible terms. more active than the current World Bank and can be used as a counterweight. of international financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), according to Reuters.

The proposal is supported by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who in March said Moscow would consider setting up a similar organization if it received technical assistance from other countries, such as China or India.

I think we need such an institution, Putin said during a meeting with ministers at his residence outside Moscow. That's what we think about.

The new development bank will be modeled after China's Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), which was established in late 2014 and has raised $100 billion in capital from more than 50 countries, including including Russia, the United States, India and Brazil. The AIIB is funded almost entirely by the founding members with no contributions from developed economies such as the United States, Japan or Germany.